St. Cloud South Junior High’s Spencer Bertram is also a member of the 13U AA Blue Sox Baseball team; he participated in the math contest at St. Cloud State University, and was named to the District 742 Honor Band.

Bertram says, "It was pretty fun. The SCSU band conductor was there, and she was our conductor. There were kids from all across the school district playing."

Rachel Nelson is Spencer’s older sister.

"He’s just such a good role model for anybody, just because he puts everything into everything that he does. He’s just so positive through everything that he does," says Nelson.

Nelson says she admires her little brother for doing everything he does, while battling against Celiac Disease.

Bertram says, "It means that you can’t eat anything with gluten in it, and once you do you get a really bad stomach ache, and it also tears up your intestines."

"For most kids I think that would really get them down because they’re not doing the things other kids can do," says Nelson, "but with him he’s always just never really complaining about it, and just kind of sticks it out. He’s just so good with it, so that’s why I really admire him."

Last winter Bertram was hospitalized several times due to his condition. His sister says he stayed positive through all of his visits to the Children’s Hospital.

"I missed about a week of school, total with hospital I missed about three weeks of school," says Bertram.

But he didn't have a hard time jumping back into the swing of things.

Nelson says, "He’s always getting himself ready to go, as soon as he comes back he jumps right back into his homework, and right back into sports, and he just does so well with all of it."

"He doesn't expect any special attention; he doesn't expect people to single him out. He’s very, very humble, one of the most humble kids I ever met. In fact he doesn't ever talk about it. If I ask him about it, the issues he’s going with, he’ll answer, but otherwise he doesn't ever say I’m not feeling well. He just goes with the flow, and does what he needs to do. He’s a great example for the rest of the kids," says Koehn.

Flames Assistant Coach Jeff Boike has coached Bertram for the last four years.

He says, "I know that he’s a fighter. You can say he’s the most calm kid that you've ever met."

"Hockey is his life," says Nelson, "He’s just been so lucky because his coaches and his team and all the parents of all the kids on the team, they really stick up for him, and he just does really well with that. He’s just such an inspiration."